Garment fastener



Aug- 3, 1965 E. w. BURCH 3,197,836

GARMENT FASTENER Filed March 14, 1963 -A, du... .r6/5.,

United States Patent O 3,197,836 GARMENT FASTENER Elton W. Burch,Savage, Minn., assignor to Thin-Flex, Inc., Savage, Minn., a corporationof Minnesota Filed Mar. 14, 1963, Ser. No. 265,145 9 Claims. (Cl.24-263) This invention relates generally to garment fasteners and ismore particularly related to garment fasteners for supporting stockingsand the like.

In prior art devices of the class with which my invention is concerned,the use of certain materials and `designs has created a desire, on thepart of the user, for a garment fastener which will easily and reliablyengage and hold a garment, such as a stocking, and will notbe irritatingto the user because of allergic reaction or physical discomfort due to4pinching, or the like. Further, as is always the case with devices inwidespread use and application, there is the desire on the part ofmanufacturers to provide improved devices Whichjmay be easily andinexpensively manufactured.

It is therefore a general object of my invention to provide an improvedgarment fastener.

Another object of my invention is to provide an improved garmentfastener which may be easily and economically manufactured.

Another object of my invention is to provide an improved garmentfastener which may be easily operated by a user.

A still further object of my invention is to provide an improved garmentfastener which will releasably engage a garment without damage to thegarment and will reliably retain engagement with such garment.

A still further object of my invention is to provide an improved garmentfastener which may be easily attached to a support therefor.

A still further object of my invention is to provide an improved garmentfastener which may be worn lby all classes of users.

Another object of my invention is to provide an improved garmentfastener which is substantially thinner than those in present use.

With these and other objects in mind, my invention comprises a two-piecegarment fastener which maybe fashioned of suitable plastic material bysuitable methods.

The two members of which my garment fastener is com-v prised include abody member, which is adapted to be attached to -a support therefor suchas is commonly worn on the body of a user and which contains a garmentengaging portion adapted to receive a portion of a garment, and asliding member, adapted to be slidably contained on the body member andhaving an end portion adapted to engage the garment in the garmentengaging portion of the body member.

These and other more detailed and specific objects will be disclosed inthe course of the following specification, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which- Y A FIG. 1 is a top View of a garmentfastener embodying the principles of my invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the drawing of FIG. l taken along sectionlines 2-2.

FIG. 3 is a drawing of a human leg showing the garment fastener of FIGS.1 and 2 in use.

FIG. 4 is a front View of a modification of the device shown in FIGS. l,2 and 3.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of FIG. 4 taken along section lines 5-5.

FIG. 6 is a sketch showing the modification of FIGS. 4 and 5 in asupport engaging relationship as it might appear under actual use.

ICC

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along section lines 2 2 in FIG. 1showing the device of FIG. 1 in garment receiving position. Y

Referring now to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 7 of the drawings in which likeelements have been identified with like reference characters, there isshown generally a body mernfor slidably receiving a garment engagingslide as will be described below. The lower portion 12 is dimensioned soas to slidably receive the garment engaging member and to receive aportion of the garment as indicated in FIG. 3. A pair of ramp-likeportions 40 and V41 extend upwardly of body member 10 on either side ofupwardly extending portion 11 and extend axially of body member 10 for aportion of the distance between upwardly extending portions 11 and 12. Afurther upwardly extending portion 13 is provided in axially displacedrelationship with upwardly extending portion 11 on body member Garmentengaging slide member 16 is suitably dimensioned to slide longitudinallyof body member 10 and includes an upwardly extending stop member 19, anupwardly extending locking member 18, an upwardly extending stop member17 and a plurality of transversely and upwardly extending ridges 21 forengagement by, for example, the linger of a user. It will be noted thatslidable Agarment engaging member 16 is constructed of material havingsuitable'resiliency characteristics whereby a tendency for the lower endof member 16 to extend upwardly from body member 10 is present. This isindicated by the line 20 extending transversely across slide member 16and is also indicated by the angular relationship between the toptwo-thirds and lower one-third of slide 16`in FIG. 2.

Body member 10 and slide 16 may be manufactured by, for example, aninjection molding process through the use of suitable molds and may becomprised of any suittable material such as the plastic knowncommercially as Delrin.

My invention may be placed in use, as illustrated in FIG. 3, by passinga garment fastener support 37 through slots 14 and 15 in the mannercommonly employed to attach garment fasteners generally to a supportingarticle of clothing. Slide member 16 is engaged by the finger of thewearer and raised to its disengaged position as `shown in FIG. 7. Inthis position, the lower end of slide member 16 raises above the top endof upwardly extending portion 12 of body member 10 and because of theinherent resiliency in the material utilized, the end `extendssufficiently toallow a garment to be positioned under slide 16. Thedevice is now ready for the positioning of, for example, a stocking,underneath the lower end of slide member 16. Engagement of the lingerengaging portion21 on slide member 16 by the user and movement of slide16 downwardly into portion 12 on body member 10 engages the article ofclothing and locking member 18 engages the lower end of upwardlyextending portion 11 on body member 10 to lock the garment engagingslide 16 in place and thereby securely hold any garment attached theretoin the position indicated in FIG. 3. Upwardly extending portion 13 onbody member 10 provides a bias to tend to maintain locking member 18 inengagement with portion 11 and portions E Ydi) and 41 tend to preventinadvertent or accidental disengagement of locking member 1S.

In order to release the garment, the operator again engages garmentslide 16 near its upper end to slightly depress stop member 18 anddisengage it from upwardly extending portion 11 on body member 10 andthe slide mayrthen be moved to its raised, disengaged position from thegarment and the garment removed from the f garment fastener.

In FIG. 3 the illustrated embodiment shows a garment A 33, in the formof a stocking, and a supporting garment 35, which may be for example agirdle which is provided with a suitable garment fastener supportingmember 37 that is fastened thereto. Y

` In FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 there is shown an improved means for detachablyengaging a supporting member 37, of the type which is provided with aloop of material at its lower end. While the remainder of the garmentfastener may be as indicatedV in FIGS. l, 2 and 3, an improved design isindicated as having a body member 30 which has a transversely extendingslot at the enlarged end thereof which extends through one edge andsubstantially across the member. An upwardly extending portion 33,having an enlarged end, is provided as an integral part of body member3i) and a downwardly depending offset portion on body member 30 has anopening 31, suitably positioned for registration and engagement withmember 33. As indicated in FIG. 6, a loop of a supporting member 34 maybe positionedin slot 32 and opening 31 is pressed into lockingengagement with member 33. Body member 30 may be fashioned of suitablematerial having sutcient resiliency for providing releasable engagementbetween spring 31 and upwardly extending member 33. It has beendetermined that the plastic material noted above, Delrin, is an exampleof a material which will provide satisfactory mechanical and structuralcharacteristics for use in this embodiment of my invention.

ItV is understood that suitable modifications may be made in thestructure as disclosed, provided such modications come within the spiritand scope of the appended claims. Having now therefore fully illustratedand described my invention, what I claim to be new and desire to protectby Letters Patent is:

1. A garment fastener comprising in combination; an elongated bodymember having a longitudinal axis, top and bottom ends and front andrear major surfaces, said body member being comprised of deformablematerial exhibiting substantial resilience characteristics, havingsupport engaging means at the top end thereof, and a pair of journalportions extending forwardly of the front major surface thereof, one ofsaid journals being positioned at the bottom end and the other of saidjournals being positioned intermediate said top and bottom ends; and aslide member comprised of like material, slidably journaled on the Vbodymember, and having a garment engaging end adapted to engage and hold agarment in the journal on the bottom end of the body anda further endslidablyjournaled in the other journal on said body member.

2. The subject matter of claim 1 in which the support engaging means atthe top end of the body includes a slot extending to one side of thebody member, a downwardly depending offset portion having an` openingextending betweenv the major surfaces thereof positioned above'and nearthe open end' of said slot, and an upwardly extending portion positionedbelow and near the open end of said slot whereby'a loop on a supportingmember may be Aengaged in said slot and said opening and said upwardlyextending portion engaged to lock said loop in said slot. n

3. The apparatus of claim 2 in which the slide member is provided with ashallow V-shaped longitudinal cross section. j

4.v A garment fastener comprising in combination; an elongated bodymember having a thin cresssection, a sup- Y il port engaging means atthe top and a pair of upwardly extending journals adapted to slidablyreceive a slide member, one of said journals being positioned at thelower end of said body member; and an elongated slide member, slidablyjournaled in the journals on said body member, said slide memberincluding a pair of axially dispaced, upwardly extendingfportionspositioned to coact with the other of said journals to retain said slidemember on the body member and said slide member further including anintegrally formed upwardly extending portion, positioned intermediatesaid pair of axially displaced upwardly extending portions for coactionwith said other of said journals to releasably lock the slide member ingarment engaging positions, whereby a garment, engaged between saidslidabie member and the journal at the lower end of said body member, isreleasably held therein. v

5. A garment fastener comprising in combination; an elongated bodymember having a thin cross section, a support engaging means at the topand a pair of upwardly extending journals adapted to slidably receive aslide member, one of said journals being positioned at the lower end ofsaid body member; and an elongated slide member, said slide member beingcomprised of material exhibiting substantial resilience characteristicsand being formed in shallow V-shaped cross section, said slide memberfurther including an integrally formed upwardly extending portiondisposed in proximity to a iirst end thereof, and said slide memberbeing slidably journaled with said upwardly extending portion inproximity to the other of said journals on said body member forlongitudinal movement between positions of engagement and disengagementwith a garment, the other end of said' slide member being upwardlyandlongitudinally displaceable so that downward and longitudinalextension of said slide member from a first position of disengagementand longitudinal retraction toward the top of said body member to asecond position of garment engagement and longitudinal extension intothe journal at the lower end of said body provides an upwardly extendingposition of the lower end of said slide member with respect to said bodywhereby a portion of a garment may be inserted thereunder for engagementby the slide member and the inside of said journal on the lower end ofsaid body.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 in `which the body member includes anupwardly extending portion positioned in proximity and displaced axiallydownwardly from the other journal on the body member so as to tend tobias the upwardly extending portion of the slide member into lockingengagement with said other of said journals.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 in which the elongated body member includesa transversely extending opening at its top end, said opening extendingthrough a iirst side thereof, an upwardly extending portion disposed inproximity to the open end of said opening; and there being an openingdimensioned to releasably engage said upwardly extending portion, saidsecond mentioned opening being positioned in proximity to the open endof said iirst named opening and extending between the major surfaces ofsaid body member.

8. A garment fastener comprising in combination; an elongated bodymember having a thin crosssection, a support engaging means at the top,a pair of upwardly extending journals adapted to slidably receive aslide member, one of said journals being positioned at the lower endofthe said body member, and an integrally formed upwardly extendingportion positioned in proximity to and displaced axially downwardly fromthe other journal member so as to tend to bias the upwardly extendingportion of a slide member into locking engagement with the other of saidjournals; and an elongated slide member, said slide ymember including anintegrally formed upwardly extending portion, positioned to coact withthe other of said journals to tend to releasably lock said slide memberin garment engaging position, slidably journaled in the journals on saidbody member whereby a garment, engaged between said slidable member andthe journal at the lower end of said body member, is releasably heldtherein.

9. A garment fastener comprising in combination; an elongatedl bodymember having a thin cross section, a support engaging means at the topand a pair of upwardly extending journals adapted to slidably receive aslide member, one of said journals being positioned at the lower end ofsaid body member; and an elongated slide member, said slide member beingcomprised of deformable material exhibiting substantial resiliencecharacteristics, said slide member being formed to normally assume ashallow V-shaped attitude, said slide member being slidably journaled inthe journals on said body member and being adapted to be deformed intoengagement with 'the journal at the lower end of the body and whenlongitudinally displaced from a garment engaging position, the lower endof the slide member will tend to assume an upwardly displaced positionwith respect to the body member whereby a portion of a garment may beinserted thereunder for engagement with the slide member and the insideof the journal on the lower end of the body to be releasably heldtherein.

References Cited bythe Examiner UNTED STATES PATENTS 827,801 8/06 Heath24-247 r1,551,368 8/25 Cloud. 2,132,073 lO/38 Ionsson 24-247 X 3,061,2579/61 Girodet 24--247 3,034,190 5/62 Magnin et al. 24-247 FOREIGN PATENTS148,529 1/37 Austria.

412,758 5/10 France.

966,658 3/50 France.

253,690 11/ 12 Germany.

20 DQNLEY I. STOCKNG, Primary Examiner.

1. A GARMENT FASTENER COMPRISING IN COMBINATION; AN ELONGATED BODYMEMBER HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS, TOP AND BOTTOM ENDS AND FRONT ANDREAR MAJOR SURFACES, SAID BODY MEMBER BEING COMPRISED OF DEFORMABLEMATERIAL EXHIBITING SUBSTANTIAL RESILIENCE CHARACTERISTICS, HAVINGSUPPORT ENGAGING MEANS AT THE TOP END THEREOF, AND A PAIR OF JOURNALPORTIONS EXTENDING FORWARDLY OF THE FRONT MAJOR SURFACE THEROF, ONE OFSAID JOURNAL BEING POSITIONED AT THE BOTTOM END AND THE OTHER OF SAIDJOURNALS BEING POSITIONED INTERMEDIATE SAID TOP AND BOTTOM ENDS; AND ASLIDE MEMBER COMPRISED OF LIKE MATERIAL, SLIDAGLY JOURNALED ON THE BODYMEMBER, AND HAVING A GARMENT ENGAGING END ADAPTED TO ENGAGE AND HOLD AGARMENT IN THE JOURNAL ON THE BOTTOM END OF THE BODY AND FURTHER ENDSLIDABLY JOURNALED IN THE OTHER JOURNAL ON SAID BODY MEMBER.